The Dead Years
by TheOnlyPotato
Summary: They called these the Dead Years. They are the worst five years – so far – in the entirety of Panem. Millions dead within months, thousands within weeks. No one is safe, but the poor caught it the worst. They can't afford the fancy serum needed for the disease, and those that can scrape up the money can't handle the handle the powerful side effects. {{OC P.O.V}}
1. Prologue

**I am OBSESSED with OC's and I should cut it out I know but OMIGAWSH I had the most perf idea for a Hunger Games story. A girl, a year younger than 17-year-old Katniss has been living with Haymitch Abernathy as his adopted daughter {~shrugs~ don't know where that idea sprouted from}. You have to read the rest or else I'll spoil it.**

**Prologue**

They called these the Dead Years. They are the worst five years – so far – in the entirety of Panem. Millions dead within months, thousands within weeks. No one is safe, but the poor caught it the worst. They can't afford the fancy serum needed for the disease, and those that can scrape up the money can't handle the handle the powerful side effects. If it wasn't the disease that killed them, it was the Serum and if not the Serum, they almost always commit suicide because what's the point of living when all your family is dead.

No one even knows what the disease _is_, so they simply named Antophoneia, Anto Disease for short. The disease started in District 3, and everyone thought that he – the man that caught it first – had inhaled too many toxins. After all, District 3 had a multitude of industrial buildings and they polluted the District's air on a regular basis.

But then the entire District seemed to have come down with it. The man's wife, then their young daughter. All of her friends caught it and spread it to their parents, who worked on the trains. The train workers boarded the train with the cargo and traveled through the Districts. It didn't take long for Panem to be caught in a pandemic.

The man and his family – the little girl and her baby brother too – were all put in front of the firing squad for a "treasonous" act. People were upset sure, the children hadn't particularly done anything and neither did their father and mother. But it's hard to stay upset when your brother or sister is in the next room _vomiting their own defecation_. They studied the man's body for weeks, trying to get any sort of clue as to what the hell had he caught. But they couldn't figure it out.

Apparently, the disease starts in one's digestive system. One's stomach gets terrible cramps that could make them fall out in the middle of anywhere, faint from the pain even. Their large and small intestines basically just shrivel up, forcing them to get rid of the defecation and urine through one way only and that's through your mouth.

Then their nervous system shuts down. Their body spasms. You completely lose all control they'd ever even thought they possessed in their bodies. They get what they call '_dead limb' _which is when one of their limbs just stop spasming and refuses to work. At this stage in the disease, you should get far, far, far away from the infected.

Next are the _boils_. Big, fat, nasty green boils that cover their entire bodies. People have tried popping them, but they just release 'spores' into the air, causing anyone around to breathe them in to immediately fall dead. And, if they're unlucky, catch Anto Disease.

Lastly is the _change_. The person is no longer recognizable as a person and they completely lose their humanity. Children call this the 'zombified stage' because they stumble around trying to take whoever they can down with them. If it gets to the boils, a person is usually shot or killed before they can do something like that. But it's happened. They escape before they can be killed and suddenly they're going into public, popping their boils for everyone to get sick off of.

The worst part is the _feasting_. It can happen anywhere between stage one and the digestive system to stage four and the change. People are advised not to go out at night, because that's usually when they're most seen around. The infected people, that is. Something awakens in them at night and they just go out and eat people. They're eating everyone from little girls to old men without remorse. And they don't remember a damned thing.

Luckily, we got out in time. Managed to get to the woods before things got too bad. Food was scarce, our manpower was even lower and we were hardly equipped with the proper tools to fight them off. But we had things no one else in District 12 had. And that was four boxes full of Serum. Serum that, when used correctly would save lives.

**So that's le prologue ^^^^^ I will ONLY continue this if you all want me to, I'm not going to waste my time and efforts on a story worth exactly ten views -.- But if you do like it, I will continue. I like the idea, but expanding on it will be up to you. I'll give you a whole bunch of Canon!Ships such as Hayffie, Everlark, Fannie, etc and also some non-canon such as Mathorne and OCxCharacter. Idk, it's up to you. Alright, bai :3**


	2. Chapter One

**I've decided that this is becoming a thing soooooooo here's chapter one.**

**Chapter One**

**Chapter One**

"Any news, any news at all?" Katniss asks, running a frustrated hand through her loose dark hair. Peeta, who had just ventured close enough to the fence to get a good look at District 12, shakes his head. We're all exhausted from running and hiding and just surviving but we still cling to the hope of maybe District 12 healing. We've lingered close to the District these past few weeks, but with each day grows a new pain and moving bases seem to be the only options at this point.

"No sign of anything. Nothing's changed, although I saw a Boiler run into the streets. Gunned down on sight but a bullet tore through his boils. Spores are all in the air, and if anyone survives that one it'll be a miracle. I say we either go back and try to help or we head north, towards the Capitol," he replies.

"Too risky, boy," Haymitch scowls, standing in protest. He had been carried recently, by Gale and Peeta. He was going through the first stages of withdrawal, and for him to walk would cause too much noise and bring the infected towards us. I rush to his side, helping him up and allowing him to lean on me, but he pushes me off, standing perfectly on his own. "I'm not putting Bryony or my life in danger again, and Katniss sure isn't going to go back with her sister like that. And you know the higher in numbers we go in the Districts, the more populations, the more chance of us being found or infected. We need to head south, towards where District 13 used to be."

_That place is still radioactive,_ I think, although bleakly. The stench of sweat and grime is heavy on my mentor and I can only do my best to keep in my bile. If I go throwing up now, they'll put me back in 12 with the Infected, think I'm one of them. At this point, I am not sure if I'm trusted enough by them. I am, after all, still Capitol blood.

"Haymitch is right. Besides, I don't think we can carry both him and Prim towards the Capitol," Katniss says, worry etching into each of her features. Her sister had inhaled spores, but since we had the Serum she was able to make a full recovery. But the girl was still weak and still hallucinating. She had to be carried, or else she may wander off into the unknown or worse. The last time we let her free to walk by herself; she almost drowned herself in the lake.

"I don't need to be carried anymore sweetheart, I need my liquors," Haymitch grunts. I can tell he's still angry at Katniss and me for sneaking into his pack and stealing his liquors to pour into the stream but I know that we'll fare much better with him sober. Katniss seems to agree.

"We can't have you drunk when we get swarmed with Boilers during Feasting Hours. We need your head clear Haymitch, you're the smartest one of all of us," she snaps. I notice the shining silver arrows on her back, the arrows from her Games. Vaguely, I wonder how much further she can be pushed before she puts an arrow in someone's skull. The thought makes me shudder.

"Alright, alright," he does a quick scan of the group, his brow forming as he thinks. I know he's just trying to help so they can leave him alone, but I don't think being snide right now would help anybody's case, especially my own. "Gale and Katniss are the strongest of all of us. They should be our defense team. Bryony and Peeta, you two will do hunting and scavenging. Katniss and Gale can't afford to wear themselves out doing that and watching out. Let me see… Hazelle, Lilith, you can carry Prim yes? I assume Posy can walk like a big girl?" The five-year-old nods her head in excitement. "Vick, Rory, you're the smallest. We should keep you in the trees as our lookouts. It's too dangerous going near the fences every evening. We could get caught. I'll help in all areas, seeing as I have no special skills."

Haymitch collapses to the ground after that, obviously spent from all the sudden moving around and hard thinking. I rush to get him water, but he declines, telling me to go collect fire wood instead. Although two hours pass in us preparing for the night, we only receive a minutes worth of rest. My body screams with a burning ache that can only be satisfied with a bed to rest in and a set of clean clothes. We have been running with heavy weights on our backs for nearly three weeks now. I notice the drooping sun off into the distance, the oranges mixing with blues and pinks and purples to make a beautiful scene. It would be better if – from my elevated position on a hill – I couldn't see the figures below being gunned down in rapid succession.

Quickly I finish gathering the heavy logs of firewood and make my way back to base. Katniss and Peeta are already stirring some sort of berry and squirrel stew, the embers burning gently under the large kettle that we had managed to grab from Haymitch's house. My mouth begins to water, so I dump the firewood next to their little pit. They don't even look up.

Dinner is delicious, and we even eat the rest of our stale bread with it. There's enough for everyone to eat their happy fill, and we all lean back, sleepy from our bountiful meal. I know it isn't always this good, so I enjoy the feeling of a full belly.

"We should buckle-up for the night. Tomorrow we head south," I say after a comfortable silence. Everyone turns to look at me, shocked by my sudden forwardness. It was a rarity for me to speak out of turn or even give someone directions. I was still untrusted by everyone besides Haymitch and Prim.

The girls and I head towards the lake to bathe, followed by the men. Then we all find good, high, spots to sleep in for the night. I am faced with task of taking Posy and strapping her in, but the little girl barely notices the height as I secure her into the tree. I settle down on a sturdy branch not far from Rory's, but my eyes refuse to shut.

The screams of people being eaten alive just aren't a substantial lullaby.

Morning comes with angry and hushed whispers. I rub the sleep from my eyes, peering down to the ground. Upon the realization that only the kids and I are still sleep – or in my case, were – I am enraged. I am not as old as them, even if it's only by a year, so they don't view me as an asset. To them I am still a kid, not deserving of being in on the plans. And, to mention yet again, a Capitolite.

I carefully unbuckle myself and slide down the tree, the smooth bark burning the palms of my hands. I notice three new people, a woman with long flowing brown locks and wide green eyes, a man with luxurious bronze hair and sea-green eyes, and an older woman with a hobble in her walk and a smile to reveal her toothless gums. I recognize them all, seeing as I had talked to each and every one before I moved to 12.

"Finnick!" I squeal loudly, throwing myself into his arms. I seem to be a breath of fresh air for the older man because we embrace longer than usual. I'll give Annie and Mags each their own respective greetings as well, but I can't hide my over enthusiasm to see someone worth talking to around these parts.

"Bry! Oh god, it's good to see you cupcake," he says, holding me tightly. Back when I lived in the Capitol, we spent every waking hour of his free time in the park near my house, talking mindlessly about things. Finnick was my older brother, in a sense, and I loved him like one. Just as I loved Haymitch as my father.

"What… how did you get to 12?" I ask when I've collected myself. Finnick begins to spin this dramatic tale of them living on his yacht for the first few days of the pandemic. But his sister caught it bad and spores were all over the place, and in their hastiness the yacht was sunk. They swam to shore with what little supplies they could scavenge and were moving south in hopes of more survivors and some sort of idea of how to deal with this whole thing.

"Finnick Odair you are absolutely insane!" I cry out, but it's accompanied with a laugh. Suddenly, Gale clears his throat. My cloud nine high is crushed out of my body and I crash back into reality so hard that I cringe. Of course, the one thing that brings me happiness is destroyed within a matter of minutes.

"Hate to break-up the love fest between you two, I truly do. But we have bigger, more important problems than the peacock's yacht," his voice is cold and rough and I can't help but take a defensive side. Now that I have the others here to help back me up, the courage inside me increases by the minute.

"Finnick, Annie and Mags are tagging along with us. They're family, and family sticks together," I say with definition. Again, they are shocked by my boldness.

"They are most definitely not," Ms. Everdeen sputters finally. There is a hushed agree amongst everyone, but Katniss and Haymitch stay silent. Sometimes it bothers me that I am his adopted daughter but he still connects with her more than he ever has with me.

"They are! They have to! They," I turn to gesture to the group of Victors standing behind me. "They bring a lot to the table. Mags, she can make a fishing hook with absolute perfection. Annie is a master at weaving nets, you should see her. And Finnick is a god with the trident," I protest.

"Fine! If it'll shut her up, they stay," Katniss roars. I feel a wave of relief washes over me and I want to hug the girl for the first time since I met her. But I remain quiet and still. To push the limits with Katniss is a bad idea; she's too high strung to be testing. "There is strength in numbers anyways. But they contribute to our survival. If you don't work, you don't eat, got it?"

"Yeah, sure, I think we understand," Finnick nods. Katniss sighs, before turning to everyone else.

"Get a good breakfast in, wake the kids up, let's get a move on. Today we make our way towards District 13."

"13?" Finnick interrupts.

"Yeah, 13." Finnick snorts, shaking his head.

"That's funny. 13's overrun."


End file.
